'Lightning' Lee Murray in critical condition after street brawl

A CAGE Rage fighter was battling for his life last night after a celebrity-studded party for a Page 3 girl ended in a blood-drenched knife brawl. Bareknuckle bruiser "Lightning" Lee Murray, 27, a top star of no-holds-barred martial arts contests, is critically ill with stab wounds. Two other men who were knifed are seriously injured. A horrified witness who saw the battle involving up to 12 men outside the Funky Buddha nightclub in upmarket Mayfair said: "It was like a bloody warzone, with fists, feet and knives on two streets.

"One of the guys must have brain damage if he survives. I saw three men hitting him so hard I thought his head would come off his neck."

Murray's friend and promoter Andy Geer said last night: "I'm devastated. Lee's in a very bad way. He just went to a party with friends and this results. He's got a colourful history but since he's been contracted to Cage Rage he's been well-behaved." Mayhem broke out at 3.15am yesterday after model Lauren Pope celebrated her 21st birthday party at the trendy club in Berkeley Street. Among celebrity guests were Calum Best, 24, Big Brother's Jade Goody, 24, and former England soccer stars Jermaine Jenas, Zat Knight and Lee Hendrie. None was involved in the incident. CCTV seen by the Mirror shows three men watching the club from the street. When former street fighter Murray emerges, they pounce.

Up to a dozen men are then drawn into a pitched battle between two groups. One man was thrown against a kerbstone then collapsed into barriers and a parked Land Rover. He staggered 60 yards further to Green Park Tube station, lurched across the road then collapsed again, bleeding heavily. An ambulance picked him up. A police officer at the scene said: "I'm not sure if he'll pull through." A trail of blood stained nearby Stratton Street. A scooter was wrecked and yet more blood was smeared down a Renault Modus.

One lorry driver who saw the battle said: "I drove round the corner to see cars coming straight at me down a one-way street. I don't know if they were getaway cars or if they were people trying to flee the fighting. They were driving like crazy things. "I pulled over, locked the cab and sat there trapped. I saw gangs of blokes knocking pieces out of each other and stabbing each other. There was blood all over the place. It was terrifying." Glamour girl Lauren said: "I couldn't believe it. We'd been having a great night celebrating my birthday. Then some guys started a fight outside afterwards... there was some rough fighting."

Staff at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel escorted frightened guests out of the back of the hotel as front doors were sealed by police. House manager Martin Newbold said: "It seems some men were lying in wait and the violence began as others left the club." Murray is in St Mary's Hospital, West London. The other two injured men, believed to be in their 30s, are also in hospital. Police said: "The men had all been inside the club. One is in a very critical condition."

Yesterday scores of offices and businesses were closed as police cordoned off the area so forensic experts could examine evidence. A manager at the club could give no details. Feared middleweight Murray is one of Cage Rage's biggest stars. He grew up in a tough London neighbourhood where he is said to have had more than 300 street fights in his youth. At 21, he trained at a Thai boxing club. He is now a star fighter in Mixed Martial Arts. Cage Rage's Dave O'Donnell said: "This is gutting. Lee was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He has fought all the best guys in the world and could go right to the top." The Funky Buddha is a favourite with celebrities and soccer stars. Prince Harry and Mick Jagger have been guests. Last year Dwight Yorke chased and caught a mugger after being robbed of his £36,000 watch at the club.

You can't put this one down to sportsfighting not working on the street, Murray was a reknowned streetfighter before he was a cage fighter. He certainly taught Tito Ortiz a bit about streetfighting.

Jonny

Maybe you can, but not in the sense that the TECHNIQUES don't work, which is usually the center of any of those bs arguments.

However, might there be some truth to this only to the extent that when one brings in the context of bieng aware of someone pulling a weapon the fight becomes deadly? (knife)

In which case the street vs. sport crap is totally irellevant anyway because even if it was true that certain techniques don't work on the street from MMA (which it is not, but I'm saying even if it were to make a point) it would be irrelevant because of the presence of a weapon which brings the fight beyond the level of "street vs. sport" and it becomes "weapon vs. no weapon".

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that if there is a street vs. sport distinction, it is not about which hand to hand techniques one would use, but how to protect your life, and in this context training with and carrying a small weapon such as a stick (jutte) or knife would be the ONLY real distinction in "street vs. MMA that appears in the ring".

Anyway, I wish him a speedy recovery, It sucks that this happens to a legitimate fighter, but it is a testament to the danger of weapons.

And maybe if some of these people want to use the "street" argument, then they should shut up if they have not trained in knife fighting or something like that.

If I'm off base here, then I'm off base, but I do think that IF there is any distinction, it has to do with weapons vs. non weapons.

This is just one of those stories that can happen no matter where you are. The only diffrence is that it happened to a MMA fighter. We can go back and look at similar stories of this kind of thing happening to traditional artists also, and non-martial artists also. Crime happens in the world, and it can happen to anyone whether your a MMA fighter, Ninja, Power Ranger, Doctor, Lawyer, or Garbage Collector.